The Expendables 2 has emerged as the No. 1 film overseas on the weekend with a $24.7 million opening on the foreign theatrical circuit at 3,510 playdates in 18 territories, according to figures released Thursday by the film’s producer, Millennium Films.

Since it is being handled overseas via local foreign distributors in many territories rather than by a single U.S. major, weekend gross dissemination is less than timely in several key offshore markets. Earlier gross estimates put the film in sixth place on the weekend.

Universal opened the Millennium Films-Nu Image Films action sequel in Russia where it took the top market spot with $8 million drawn from 810 sites, 45% bigger than the opening market tally grossed by 2010’s The Expendables. In Italy, Universal recorded a No. 1 debut gross of $1.9 million at 345 playdates, 58% more than the original’s opening market tally.

Lionsgate, the sequel’s U.S. distributor, is also handling the film in the U.K. where the opening tally was $3.1 million (including previews) at some 451 situations. (The original Expendables grossed a total $171.4 million overseas versus $103.1 million in the U.S. and Canada.)

Meanwhile, a lethargic late-summer session on the foreign circuit still generated enough box office momentum to propel The Dark Knight Rises’ overseas gross total past that of its franchise predecessor, 2008’s The Dark Knight despite Rises’ second place finish overall on the weekend.

The $21.4 million weekend tally recorded by Rises at 8,870 locations in 61 offshore markets was down 40% from last round. Still, as per Warner Bros., director Christopher Nolan’s final Batman title hoisted its foreign cume to $488.6 million -- $18.9 million more than Dark Knight’s $469.7 million.

That gap should widen since Rises opens in Greece this week, China on Aug. 27 and in Italy on Aug. 29. The three biggest Rises markets to date by far are the U.K. (market cume of $77.8 million over five rounds), South Korea ($40.8 million) and Australia ($40.5 million).

Bouncing to No. 3 was Pixar’s animation title Brave, also distributed by Disney, which has accumulated $179.2 million overseas so far thanks in part to a $20.3 million weekend playing at 5,630 in 46 territories.

A No. 1 third round in the U.K. delivered $8.3 million at 553 sites for a market cume of $13 million. The film’s $408.3 million global cume makes Brave the 11th consecutive Pixar title to exceed the $400-million gross benchmark worldwide.

Opening No. 1 in France and Brazil was Sony’s Total Recall, which generated $18.9 million on the weekend at a total of 5,375 screens in 55 markets. The remake starring Colin Farrell of the 1990 Carolco Pictures original starring Arnold Schwarzenegger, made its foreign debut on Aug.1, and has collected a foreign gross total of $58 million thus far.

Biggest market was South Korea, where Recall premiered No. 3 after two local productions with $2.9 million extracted from 439 sites. France came up with $3.2 million from 524 locales while Brazil kicked in $2 million at 485 venues. Recall ranks as the weekend’s No. 4 title.

No. 5,The Bourne Legacy -- the fourth episode of the espionage franchise inspired by Robert Ludlum’s novels -- co-starring Jeremy Renner, Rachel Weisz and EdwardNorton broadened its run by five territories, and drew $18.1 million from 2,018 locations in 18 territories in all. Cume stands at $28 million.

Marvel’s The Avengers is winding up its spectacular 17-round foreign campaign (grossing $863.9 million to date) with a stop in Japan. The Disney release generated $17.7 million (including previews) in its full opening stanza there. Worldwide take for the comic book action caper weighs in at $1.482 billion.

Ted, director Seth MacFarlane’s comedy-fantasy starring Mark Wahlberg, pushed its international gross total to $138.2 million (with 32 territories still to play) thanks to a $11.6 million weekend at 2,938 locations in 26 markets. A No. 3 third round holdover in the U.K. produced $3.2 million at 464 sites for a 17-day market cume of $34.7 million. Greece and Hungary open this week via distributor Universal.

Hoisting its foreign cume nearly to the $650-million mark ($649.4 million) was Twentieth Century-Fox’s Ice Age: Continental Drift, which bagged $11.1 million on the weekend at 7,128 venues in 60 territories. The animation sequel is breathing harder on its 2009 franchise predecessor, Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs, which grossed$694million overseas.

Lionsgate’s release of Summit Entertainment’s Step Up Revolution looks to dance away with $8.5 million from some 2,700 screens in 33 markets, lifting the sequel’s foreign cume to $44.3 million (worldwide, $77.1 million).

The latest title in the dance-drama series costarring Kathryn McCormick and Ryan Guzman has grossed $13.3 million from territories handled by Universal including France where Revolution registered a No. 5 weekend of $1.4 million at 311 locations for a 12-day market cume of $4.6 million.

DreamWorks Animation’s Madagascar 3: Europe’sMost Wanted, currently in its 11th round of overseas playdates, grossed $5.5 million on the weekend at 2,340 locations in 35 territories. Overseas cume for the Paramount release stands at $352.2 million. Openings in Italy and Italian-speaking Switzerland are on tap this week.

Universal’s release of ParaNorman, Laika Entertainment’s 3D stop motion animation follow-up to Caroline, drew $2 million on the weekend at 925 sites in nine markets for an overseas cume so far of $7.7 million. Openings in six territories including Germany and Russia are due this week.

Opening sluggishly at No. 8 in France was director Anne Le Ny’s drama/fantasy Cornouaille (Cornwall) starring Vanessa Paradis. The UGC Distribution release about a young woman visiting the house owned by her deceased father drew $798,877 from 220.

Other international cumes:Fox’s Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter, $44.7 million (after a $1.76 million weekend at 1,447 situations in 18 markets); Universal’s What ToExpect When You’re Expecting, $6.1 million in Universal territories only; Paramount’s The Dictator, $110.2 million; Fox’s Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Dog Days, $8.9 million; Paramount’s Katy Perry: Part of Me, $6.6 million; and Fox’s Prometheus, $204.5 million after a $3.1 million weekend at 1,603 sites in six markets.